iCalendar-Based Back-End

This is a one-way process of getting meeting notifications from the Audio Server to the Microsoft Outlook integration, through several Cisco Unified MeetingPlace components. The MPWeb database is the only one used to both store and retrieve data; this is required to support update
notifications with iCalendar. When sending an updated meeting notification, you need to have information about the previous notifications sent for the same meeting.

Supported Configurations

Both the front-end and the back-end notification mechanisms for the Microsoft Outlook gateway depend on the MPWeb, but in different ways. The front-end notification mechanism requires MPWeb to be present on the machine that runs the gateway. This is because ASP logic in the front end relies on MPAgent / MPX (which are part of the MPWeb) to do template processing.

The new iCalendar back-end notification mechanism requires a connection to the MPWeb SQL database to keep information about delivered notifications. Since ODBC is used to connect to the MPWeb database, the back-end does not require that the MPWeb is on the same machine, just that it is accessible via TCP/IP.

Front-End and Back-End, Connecting to Local MPWeb Database

You can install both the front-end and back-end notification mechanisms on a machine, and configure the back-end to connect to the local MPWeb SQL Database. By default, the installation program will attempt to use this configuration by examining the Windows registry. This is a common configuration suitable for most users.

Back-End Only, Connecting to Remote MPWeb Database

During the installation, you can select to install the back-end notification mechanism only. You will be prompted to enter the name of the MPWeb machine which runs the SQL database that you want to use. Once installed, you can change the MPWeb machine you connect to by using the MP Control Panel. This configuration is useful if you want to support only back-end notifications, and keep the MPWeb server load low.

Front-End and Back-End, Connecting to Remote MPWeb Database =

You can install both the front-end and back-end notification mechanisms on a machine, and configure the back-end to connect to the
database on a different MPWeb server. You can configure this during installation, or by using the MP Control Panel after the installation has finished. This configuration might be suitable for clustered environments.

Front-End Only

You can install only the front-end notification mechanism on a machine. You can configure this during the installation. This configuration is suitable for users that only use Outlook to schedule their MeetingPlace meetings. Invitations for meetings scheduled through MPWeb will not be delivered to Outlook users.

When installing Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Release 6.0 MR5 on a machine that previously did not have an older version of the Microsoft Outlook integration, no special steps are required. Just run setup.exe and follow the instructions on the screen.

If you have an older version of the Microsoft Outlook integration installed on the machine, you must run the migration tool, to migrate information about delivered notifications from dedicated calendar in Exchange to a table in MPWeb database.

Customize your notification templates. (Because this is a new version of the Microsoft Outlook integration, the customized templates use a new format. If you customized any templates in your previous release, you will have to customize them again. Templates from previous releases will not work and will result in corrupted notifications.) See Customizing the Microsoft Outlook Templates.

Check your anti-virus rules, as they may need to be adjusted. (McAfee will give you more protection than you need here.)

Running the Migration Tool

The migration tool is a file called MPOLMig.exe, which is shipped with each version of the Microsoft Outlook integration installation program for MR5.